Andhra passes bill for 5% quota for Kapus

Amaravati: The Andhra Pradesh assembly on Saturday unanimously passed a legislation to provide five per cent reservation for the Kapu community in government jobs and educational institutions.

Meeting a long-pending demand of Kapus, the government has included the community in the backward classes by creating a separate category 'F'.

In the absence of only opposition party YSR Congress, which is boycotting the session, leaders of ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and its coalition partner Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) participated in the debate on the bill.

Minister for Backward Classes Welfare K. Atchan Naidu tabled the bill. Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and other members spoke on the bill. It was later passed unanimously with a voice vote.

The state cabinet had earlier accepted recommendations of the Manjunatha Committee, which examined the demand of Kapus and suggested earmarking five per cent for them.

As this legislation will take the overall quantum of reservation in the state to over 50 per cent, the cap fixed by the Supreme Court, the state government will request the Centre to amend the Constitution.

The existing reservation for various castes is 50 per cent. It is 25 per cent for backward classes, 15 per cent for Scheduled Castes, six per cent for Scheduled Tribes and four per cent for minorities.